The year is 2011. The holiday season has just wrapped up, and I’m furiously playing all of the latest PS3 games I had picked up during the holiday sales. At the time, I hadn’t been much of a PC gamer, and I didn’t own an Xbox 360. My best friend prodded me not to sleep on a new big release coming to the PlayStation 3 in January. I pushed back on the idea of adding to my mounting backlog. But my pal was convinced that I’d be enthralled with Mass Effect 2. While I had heard of the series, I had never had any hands-on experience with it. My friend knew exactly what I’d be missing, as he played the original on PC. Reluctantly, I picked up Mass Effect 2 upon its release. After receiving a summary of the events that occurred in the original game and making a few key choices, I quickly took control of what would be my personalized vision for the main protagonist, Commander Shepard. The degree to which I could interact with the game’s colorful characters and control the narrative astounded me. Combat was enthralling and intuitive. Adding newcomers to my crew and seeing what they could do under my command in the heat of battle was a real treat. Movement felt clean and tight, making shootouts and engagements a thrill ride. Quickly, I became a die-hard Mass Effect fanatic.
Videos by ComicBook.com
I’d later experience the original before heading into Shepard’s big finale with Mass Effect 3. My pure delight over such an epic adventure couldn’t be understated. Space-faring sci-fi adventures were no stranger to this Trekkie who had also gobbled up The Expanse series of novels like candy. But Mass Effect became the purest form of escapist entertainment in the genre that I had experienced to date. After every decision, I wondered how an alternate choice would affect the Normandy crew. It pushed me to replay each of the games several times, each time just as thrilling as the last. I could drone on for days about my love for Mass Effect, but I suspect there’s a healthy swath of gaming fans who harbor a similar abiding fondness for BioWare’s stellar creation. With the announcement of BioWare’s closure and the cancellation of the latest Mass Effect game as a result, the gaming internet has been in mourning over the death of the studio. But I’m here to tell you that I truly believe that Mass Effect is too big to die with its creator.
Mass Effect Has Earned Its Fame
If you’re a fan, then you don’t need me to tell you that the original trilogy easily established Mass Effect as gaming’s most defining sci-fi RPG. It’s in no small part thanks to the incredible characters who each became just as memorable as the Commander we embodied, innovation in player agency that carried forward into succeeding titles, a harrowing and expansive universe, and an incredibly well-constructed saga. It takes an incredibly inventive and creative force to create fiction that people connect with on an emotional level. It may sound silly, but I truly cared about Garrus, Tali, and the rest. These people were my crew aboard the Normandy. Losing one was soul-crushing. I’d swear that my next playthrough would be different. Then, I’d be determined to rewrite history like the Flash racing back in time to save his mother. That’s a level of dedication and connection not many games and various forms of entertainment ever achieve.
That’s the kind of force driving Mass Effect fandom. It’s a devoted fanbase that will ultimately grant the franchise staying power. Despite middling reviews and being a critical disappointment, Mass Effect: Andromeda still managed to ride on its namesake to achieve commercial success, even if it didn’t match the performance of Mass Effect 3 or what EA wanted. For EA, this gaming property represents a legacy that few publishers can manufacture from scratch. It’s lightning in a bottle, as it were. And the beauty of a well-established property is that it already has a foundation. The cancellation of Mass Effect 5 might have placed the franchise’s current future on hold, but that doesn’t erase the existing fanbase that it built.
EA Still Has Every Reason To Keep the Mass Effect Universe Alive
Unfortunately, we’re witnessing another studio closure in a long line of studio closures across gaming giants and publishers. BioWare happens to be a prominent name in the industry because of games like Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect. But let’s not pretend that BioWare hasn’t become a shell of its former self. Many of the creative writers, directors, and all-around leaders who were around during the original trilogy haven’t been with the studio for years. Staff turnover has changed the entire face of BioWare. That’s not to say that the existing staff prior to its closure weren’t talented. But I didn’t use the phrase “lightning in a bottle” lightly. A studio takes more than talent. It takes the perfect configuration of a dedicated team with excellent leadership. Games like Anthem and the recent Dragon Age: Veilguard have proven that the studio isn’t what it once was, and most fans have understood this for years.
The outright cancellation of Mass Effect 5 as a result of the BioWare closure is really the pain point across the media. But what I don’t think everyone understands is that the cancellation of Mass Effect 5 doesn’t immediately signal the end of Mass Effect. Nowhere in any announcement did EA state that Mass Effect is over and the property is dead. To the contrary, reports have actually confirmed that the Amazon Prime TV series is continuing onward despite the recent developments. The IP is too valuable to simply give up on. Financial pressure and restructuring have forced EA’s hand. But that doesn’t equate to a future without Mass Effect.
Mass Effect Can Have a Future Beyond BioWare
The original franchise creators might no longer be in play. But Mass Effect can exist without them. There’s a long history of video game properties being handed off to knew developers who managed to continue a storied legacy and craft something special. BioWare’s very own Baldur’s Gate was taken over by Larian Studios for the third game in the series and magic happened. Fallout shifted from Interplay to Black Isle Studios. Then Bethesda Game Studios took over for the remarkable Fallout 3. Obsidian then crafted the wonderous Fallout: New Vegas. Many modern game makers like Blooper have shown care and respect when remaking classic properties like Silent Hill 2. In other words, Mass Effect isn’t beholden to BioWare, and we should stop assuming that only a single studio can do the game franchise justice. That’s simply not how things work anymore in a modern gaming industry with constantly shifting properties and developers.
The Amazon Prime series has the potential to reinvigorate the franchise. If EA can distance itself from its current financial stressors, there is little doubt that Mass Effect will be a major talking point in the gaming industry, once again in the not-so-distant future. I’m always going to be grateful to my best bud for bringing me into the Mass Effect fold all those years ago. That trilogy is a truly memorable experience. Sure, BioWare’s closure is a sad end to the studio behind this legendary franchise. But it doesn’t end the universe that the studio created. I think many will agree that the Normandy crew, the worlds we all explored, and the choices that inevitably kept us replaying these adventures deserve more than being left behind. I believe that whether it’s EA or another gaming partner, Mass Effect will receive new life in the future. It’s only a matter of time.
